The mass protests of the population that have swept Hong Kong since the beginning of summer are associated not only with an attempt to promote the unpopular extradition law, but have gone far beyond its borders, head of the local administration, Carrie Lam.

“Incidents over these past two months have shocked and saddened Hong Kong people. We are all very anxious about Hong Kong, our home. We all hope to find a way out of the current impasse and unsettling times”, SCMP reported quoting her.

Lam stated that local residents are concerned not only with political, but also with socio-economic problems: housing inaccessibility, youth opportunities, income inequality, etc. The head of the administration expressed her intention to initiate a comprehensive dialogue with all segments of the population, as well as with the expert community for finding solutions to these deeply rooted problems.

Three months ago, massive protests erupted in Hong Kong against a bill being promoted by local authorities, which aims to establish a mechanism for extradition from Hong Kong to mainland China to prosecute people suspected of violating Chinese laws or wanted. Under pressure from the public, Carrie Lam repeatedly announced the suspension of the bill, but the demonstrations did not stop. On Wednesday, she officially announced the procedure for the formal recall from the Legislative Council, which the demonstrators insisted on. However, they also put forward a number of other requirements, which the authorities do not agree to satisfy, including an amnesty for all participants in street riots detained.